LAGOS, NIGERIA – 24 Sept 2014 – Wema Bank PLC- (Bloomberg: WEMA NL, NSE: WEMA)
Wema Bank plc, Nigeria’s oldest indigenous lender, reaffirmed its commitment to supporting international trade during a forum in Lagos organized by the Bank on Trade and Structured Finance for stakeholders tagged, ‘Supporting Businesses through renewed Trade Focus’.
The forum sought to bring together regulators, various stakeholders and regulators in the international trade business in Nigeria.
During the event, SegunOloketuyi, Managing Director of Wema Bank plc said the trade forum was part of efforts at sensitizing stakeholders on developments within the sector as well as bring various parties – stakeholders and regulators together to discussissues, challenges and chart a way forward for future development and policy formulation. Mr. Oloketuyi also said that as part of the ongoing positive transformation at Wema Bank, the bank was well poised to support businesses in the areas of trade and structured finance. He further disclosed that in recent times, Wema Bank has attracted over USD100million in lines of credit for foreign trade and another USD50million in structured finance lines from various institutions.
The Deputy Comptroller of the Nigeria Customs Services, Aber T Benjamin spoke on the Pre-Arrival Assessment Report (PAAR) scheme, which was introduced by the Nigerian Customs Service in 2013 to fast-track the clearance of cargo and reduce costs at the nation’s ports. He also went ahead to introduce the new web-based trade portal of the Nigeria Customs Services to handle a customer’s end-to-end trade needs.
In her comments, OnyinyeAhuchogu, Deputy Director, Trade & Exchange Dept, Central Bank of Nigeria commended Wema Bank for the strides it has made in the past 4 years. She also implored all stakeholders. She also spoke of the CBN’s partnership with other relevant institutions in making the international trade process simple and effective in Nigeria. One of the initiatives that came into being as a result of this partnership is the electronic form M.
In recent times, Wema Bank has invested significantly in IT infrastructure to boost service delivery to its customers and provide excellent, value-adding services. It was also disclosed at the forum that the bank has recently completed a web-based poertal to enable its customers conduct their international trade transactions from the comfort of their offices with minimal interactions with the branches.
Established in 1945, Wema Bank is Nigeria’s longest surviving indigenous financial institution. The Bank offers a range of corporate, retail, SME, electronic banking and financial advisory services to its numerous customers.